According to municipal service workers, the death of the pigeons always appears to be normal: a bird starts to turn around quickly and then falls to the ground. Moscow vets explain that such symptoms indicate vessel thrombosis. They believe that such problems may be caused by kidney and liver diseases, being the result of this summer’s abnormal heat wave in Moscow. Part of the pigeon population already died back then.

However, not only pigeons suffered from the heat. In July and August of 2010, Moscow was suffocating due to the unusual heat: all the previous temperature records were broken, with the highest temperature reaching the mark of 38-39C. In addition, the city was covered with toxic smog from the burning forests to the south of Moscow. Not surprising then, that the daily human death rate during these two months doubled.